Puzzle.



R. L. HICKS.

PUZZLE.

vmrmonxou FILED MAY 24, 1909.

953,908. Patented Apr. 5, 1910.

EJNITEI) STATES PATENT FFIE RUFUS LEE HICKS, OF SINCLAIR, TEXAS.

PUZZLE,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Burns LEE HICKS, a citizen of the United States,residing at Sinclair, in the county of Jones and State of Texas, haveinvented a new and useful Puzzle, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to a puzzle of that type consisting of variouslyshaped wire elements detachably linked together.

The invention has for its object to provide a puzzle of this characterin which the parts thereof are variously shaped, and so designed thatone of the parts can be engaged or disengaged through a series of stepswhich, if not understood, are extremely difficult to work out.

The invention comprises the various novel features of construction andarrangement of parts which will be more fully described hereinafter andset forth with particularity in the claims appended hereto.

In the accompanying drawing, which illustrates one embodiment of theinvention, Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the parts of thepuzzle in initial position. Figs. 2 to 6 are similar views, showing thevarious stages or steps in the solution of the puzzle.

Similar reference characters are employed to designate correspondingparts throughout the views.

Referring to the drawing, A designates the holder or body element; B,the ring; C, the keeper; and D, the bail or handle thereof.

The holder or body element A consists of a piece of wire bent into theshape of a ring of more or less irregular polygonal form, with one sidethereof bent into a U-shaped rentrant portion 1, and one end of the wireis shaped to form an eye 2, while the other end is shaped into a finger3 passing approximately centrally through the eye, whereby the eye formsa gate through which the keeper is passed around the finger during acertain stage in the solution of the puzzle. The ring B is of suchdiameter as to freely encompass the reent-rant portion or arm 1 of theholder, and is normally retained thereon by the keeper O which is aU-shaped piece of wire, the arms l of which are terminated in eyes 5 towhich the bail D is attached, the keeper and hail constituting togethera ring retaining device. This bail consists of an open wire link doubledon itself to form a U-shaped structure, and the arms 6 thereof areconnected with the eyes Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 24,

Patented Apr. 5, 1910.

1909. Serial No. 497,931.

keeper is shifted from the position shown in Fig. l to that shown inFig. 2, by allowing the keeper to drop down out of the arm and throughthe ring, the bail being at the same time swung downwardly at an angleto the keeper, as shown in Fig. 2. The ring is next raised off the arm 2to the dotted line position a, Fig. 3, and the ring and keepermanipulated so that the ring can assume the position shown by the brokenlines o. The bail is then thrown upwardly to lie in line with the keeperand both are moved to the dotted line position shown in Fig. l, so as topass the divergent extremities of the keeper over the eye 2 of theholder C, so that the parts can be moved to the position shown in Fig.5. The movement is continued as indicated by the arrow, Fig. 5, so thatthe keeper 0 will assume a horizontal position, as shown in Fig. 6, thenose of the keeper being brought into alinement with the eye 2 forinsertion through the latter, as indicated by dotted lines Fig. 6,whereupon the keeper can be disposed to pass over the finger 3. Afterthe keeper is in this position, it is brought backwardly through the eye2 so that the ring, which is during these movements suspended on thekeeper, can be released therefrom simply by being passed ofi the nose ofthe keeper while the latter is disposed between the arm 1 and eye, asshown by broken lines in Fig. 6. Obviously, by passing through theforegoing steps in the reverse order, the parts can be re-assembled.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with theaccompanying drawing, I have disclosed what I consider now to be thebest embodiment of the invention, but I desire to have it understoodthat the construction and arrangement of the parts are merelyillustrative, and that such changes may be made when desired as arewithin the scope of the claims.

Having thus described the invention, what Cir I claim as new, and desireto secure by Letters-Patent, is

l. A puzzle comprising a holder formed with a U-shaped reentrant arm andhaving an eye with a finger passing therethrough, a ring adapted tosurround the arm, and a ring retaining device having a portion forming akeeper normally engaging the arm for retaining the ring thereon andmovable to disengage the ring from the arm and adapted to pass throughthe said eye and over the finger to disengage the ring from the keeper.

2. A puzzle comprising a holder formed with a U-shaped reentrant arm andhaving an eye with a finger passing therethrough, a ring adapted tosurround the arm, a keeper normally engaging the arm for retaining thering thereon and movable to disengage the ring from the arm and adaptedto pass through the said eye and over the finger to disengage the ringfrom the keeper, and a hail connected with the keeper.

3. A puzzle comprising a holder formed of a single piece of wire bentinto the general form of a ring with a reentrant U- .shaped arm portionand having one end formed into an open eye through which the other endprojects, a ring adapted to engage the said reentrant arm, and a ringretaining device including a U-shaped keeper interlocked with the holderand adapted to enter the eye to pass over the said finger for releasingthe ring.

4. A puzzle comprising a holder consisting of apiece of wire ofirregular form shaped with a reentrant U-shaped arm and provided with aterminal eye, and a finger passing through the eye, a ring surroundingthe said rentrant arm, a U-shaped keeper engaging the arm and straddlingthe side of the holder, said keeper having its extremities formed intodivergent eyes, and a. bail hingedly connected with. the eyes of thekeeper to form a handle and to form a bridge between the free ends ofthe arms thereof.

5. A puzzle comprising a holder having a terminal eye and a terminalfinger extending therethrough, a keeper engaging the holder and movablethrough the eye to pass over the finger, a handle connected with thekeeper, and a device detachably held on the holder by the keeper.

In testimony, that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have heretoaflixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

RUFUS LEE HICKS. Witnesses W. R. TArLoR, C. C. MATTHEWS.

